Yuvraaj Parasher, the lead in “India’s Brokeback Mountain” Dunno Y … Na Jaane Kyun, which features the country’s first big screen same-sex kiss, as well as some obvious nods to gay sex, has been disowned by his family in Agra.
Perhaps worse, Yuvraaj’s father Satish Parasher is going to the press to tarnish his son’s name: “I feel what he has done is against the culture and tradition of our country and it challenges the purity of the relationship between a man and a woman. He kept us in the dark right from when he signed the film and told us that he is acting with a girl. When we heard about the poster and the things he has done in the film, we were shocked, hurt and humiliated. People will make fun of us and we won’t be able to live peacefully ever again. … We are a respected family and I’m appalled that he is playing a gay man’s role. We’re finished. All the dreams and hopes we had built around him are over. For just a film role, he has lost out on his blood ties. We don’t want to see his face ever… not even when we are dying.”
It’s not just Satish who’s upset: India’s film board is asking director Sanjay Sharma to cut the scenes featuring Yuvraaj and co-star Kapil Sharma.
Jack
He’s even tarnishing his son’s ‘anme’?! The sick bastard…
PLAYS WELL WITH OTHERS
“For just a film role, he has lost out on his blood ties”…Because of your so hatefull, vile, bigoted, disgusting tirade against your own son “for just a film role” it is quite apparent that because Ohhh, the horrors “People will make fun of us” your “blood ties” really aren’t so very strong for your sense of “family” ……………..
REBELComx
“Culture and tradition of our country”? This Indian family is obviously of the Muslim faith that only invaded India in the last few hundred years. Because original Indian Hindu tradition, mythology, and religion has a muuuuch longer history of being CHALK FULL of homoeroticism and gender bending. Just like the Ugandan people screeching how homosexuality is not part of their culture…for only the last 1 or 2 hundred years that the Christians took over and brainwashed everyone away from their former “homo? eh, whatever” attitudes. As they did with the greeks and the romans and the native americans.
GaryG
“Culture and tradition…” Which really means religious beliefs. Just one more example of how religion is hateful, cruel, and ultimately, heartless, no matter what type.
Sug Night
Hey, if Yuvraaj needs a place to bunk…..just sayin…
7
Wish my parents would just hurry up and cut me off, too. Trying to keep them happy is seriously taking tolls on my health.
Paul
ive indian bf and he is afraid to tell his parents or anyone else even though he is well-off middle-class professional working at a very tolerant multinational with nothing to lose
in india, my observation is that attitudes towards gays is a function of education & urban exposure, not religion. The hardline, relatively un-educated christians, muslims, hindus, sikhs, buddhists are all almost equally homophobic, with perhaps the muslims being the worst and buddhists being the most friendly; these attitudes tend to mirror attitudes towards women. In contrast, indians who are journalists, lawyers, bureaucrats, academics, doctors, or involved with NGOs are much more tolerant towards gays. However, a substantial portion of rural/poor Indians (the “real india”), from my experience and observation, don’t have particularly strong opinions on gays. B There is even a culture of eunuchs in part of north india (hirjas). Many in fact would think gays are funny and odd rather than a threat, and this attitude was on full display in the Bollywood hit film Dostana. Pehraps because they think being gay is a feint rather than a real thing. The colonial era law against sodomy was overturned by the delhi high court only about a year ago on the basis of what is basically a liberal, enlightened argument not a technicality. The government hasn’t appealed and nobody cares about this development anymore. The government bureaucracy has long ignored gays and has not bothered them; things are much different in Bangladesh or Pakistan where gay-bashing and persecution by the government (ex local police) periodically flares.
i feel sorry for yuvraaj
Jillian
Many parents don’t deserve the privilege of being parents at all.
These two self-righteous, narcissistic bigots are such examples and don’t deserve to ever again have anything to do with their gifted son.
Best of luck to Yuvraaj. May he put his unworthy parents far behind him, and may they, in turn, simmer in the bitter stew they have created till it is done.
BusyBoudoir
@REBELComx:
Brief history lesson for RebelComx: Islam was first introduced in India close to the 10th century, and not only did the Hindus and Muslims co-exist (after a period of war, of course) but there is actually a literary record that shows homosexuality was culturally accepted. It wasn’t until the, yes, hardline Islamic Mughal Empire when homosexuality started to be punished. Then of course, the very un-Islamic BRITISH arrived and they had no problems with criminalizing homosexuality.
1860. Section 377. So you have absolutely NO CLUE as to what you are talking about, and especially have no grounds to claim this actor’s parents are “obviously” muslim.
Now, I can understand your being prejudice. Its an easy trap to fall into, millions of people do. At least you’re not unique! 😀
What I don’t understand is your statement that the Christians brainwashed the Greeks. Did St. Augustine magically travel through time and slap the dicks out of Plato’s mouth? That sounds like a really awesome episode of Sliders to me. You gotta get me the DVD of that one.
Aaron in Honolulu
The father is ridiculous and a whiney bitch.
REBELComx
@BusyBoudoir: Your easily googled history lesson does nothing to disprove my suggestion. The hard line, ultra conservative version of Islam that is so anti-gay and a much more recent incarnation than the form that originally spread to the country has done far more to influence the culture of India towards homophobia than British Imperial law.
As far as the Christians brainwashing the Greeks… have you not just answered your own question in a way? The very law you are attempting to use to disprove my suggestion is the prime example of the influence of religion on regional politics. Without the spread of Christianity through the Roman Empire, thus making homosexuality illegal in all of it’s provinces, including Greece (which now has a very homophobic culture for a people who used to deify such acts), such a morality law would not have been created by the heavily religious British empire to begin with.
But you’re right, this is a prejudice. I’m an anti-theist. All religion is useless and even dangerous in this modern age, but it’s not my fault some have been worse for us than others.
Andy
“All the dreams and hopes we had built around him are over.”
Typical controlling parents.
whatever
Might just be a publicity stunt for the movie.
Ivan
I think I’ll call my parents and tell them how great they are.
Susan
Yay for the father! More power to the family.
Soupy
Please don’t reproduce Susan.
alan brickman
Just immigrate to canada ..we’ll have you…
kalifani6
@REBELComx: Very good. Not many know these things.Especially about African culture.
Hrishi
First of all, before venturing out with such a bold role in a film, I would really try to work it out with parents and make them comfortable first. Agreed, it wont be easy or fast, but it would have reduced chances of such public drama. It hard for desi parents to suddenly learn such things and they are not prepared to face public ridicule.
Parents talking about “disowning”, “don’t wanna see ever” bla bla bla are just emotional outbursts and hopefully will subside with time. Would be interesting if he goes and reminds his parents that disowning children for any reason is NOT Indian culture either. I have gone through a similar drama (certainly not to this public scale though) and harsher words with my family and am really lucky that my parents have come around and are very supportive now.
kalifani6
@Hrishi “First of all, before venturing out with such a bold role in a film, I would really try to work it out with parents and make them comfortable first.”
Ist of all whose life is it anyway? He is a grown man.
When we step out into the world on our own that’s when ALL parents lose their jurisdiction over the decisions one makes.
He didn’t ask to be brought into the world.
It is they who owe him the promise of unconditional love…NOT THE OTHER WAY AROUND.
Giving in to such prejudices only serves to keep society BACKWARD and immoral.
Taking that role as an ACTOR is doing society no harm.
Consider how likely they would condemn him if he were a violent crime lord, or dictator, or assassin, but that turned out to be very lucrative for him.
You think they’d turn down any benefits received for his ill gotten gains, LET ALONE DIS-
OWN HIM?
Highly doubtful.
Stand-up and be proud of who you are!
You’ll make no difference in this world otherwise.